Welding device



1952 R. w. CLACK 2,613,305

WELDING DEVICE Filed Nov. 26, 1951 PUMP 7 6 F= /7 Iflkihn F IIIIIIIIIIIIIA 26 0.0. POWER I SUPPLY H.F POWER 0/0 0 SUPPLY W 2/ \22 INVENTOR. ROBERT W. CLACK BY flMfiWw Patented Oct. 7, 1952 WELDING DEVICE Robert W. Clack, Lafayette, Califi, assignor to the United States of America as represented by the United States Atomic Energy Commission Application November 26, 1951, Serial No. 258,225

Claims.

The present invention relates to electric welding devices and to improvements thereof particularly with respect to butt welding.

Although the art of welding has been widely exploited and innumerable devices developed for electric welding, such devices commonly require an electric current of a very large order with a consequently high operating cost, as well as requiring large size equipment. Also conventional electric welding devices deposit a certain amount of metal oxide in the weld Joint which tends to weaken the weld.

The present invention operates by electron discharge between parts tov be welded, and provides for the maximum utilization of the energy applied by the use of all electrons forming a part of the discharge and preferably by multiplying the number of electrons by a resonant interchange of energy between adjacent surfaces to be joined. Provision is also madefor the exclusion of extraneous matter, such as oxides, from the weld joint and for the automatic adjustment of the parts to be welded into proper position for the above-noted resonant electron discharge.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved welding device providing a resonant electron discharge between adjacent surfaces of parts to Ice-joined for heating same.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved method and means for maximizing the heating by an electron discharge between adjacent surfaces of two parts to be joined tov most efficiently raise the temperature of these surfaces for welding.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide an improved welding device emplaying, in a vacuum, electron discharge between parts to be. joined. I Further objects, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the follow,- ing specification and claims taken together with the appended drawing wherein the sole figure is a sectional view of a. preferred embodiment of the invention,

Considering the elements and connections of the invention and referring to the drawing, there is shown an envelope or housing I which encloses a vacuum chamber 2 and which is preferably fabricated for disassembly to provide access to chamber 2 for cleaning 0.? the like. .Housing I may thus be formed of a pair of end portions 3 and 4' and a centerportion 6, all having flanges thereabout in contact with .each other and being secured together, asby bolts through the flanges, and having gaskets or washers about the connection to insure air-tightness. Housing I is evacuated through a pipe 1 which may "extend through a wall of center portion 6 and which communicates with a vacuum pump 8 and may have a valve 9 disposed therein to shut. off

chamber 2 from pump 8.

End portions 3 and 4 are each provided with an aperture in the end wall thereof and these apertures are aligned about a common axis which extends through the center of chamber 2. Within these apertures there are disposed means carrying the parts to be welded and these means are removably positioned within the apertures in order that they may be, removed to attach or detach parts to be joined if such is desired. One of the mounting means may be formed to rigidly hold a part II to be joined and may, as shown. consist of a conical plug I2 having a small bore therethrough and mating with an aperture tapered inwardly in end portion 3. Plu I2 may be made of rubber or the like to form a good seal with the edges of the aperture in end portion 3 and also to grasp or clamp part II which extends through the bore in plug I2 in mating relation thereto.

The mounting means engaging end portion 4 may be formed as a hollow cylinder l3 having its external surface formed to slip-fit the walls of the aperture in end portion 4 and to thus be movable therein along the axis of the aperture'upon the application of sufficient force to overcome the friction of the slip-fit. Within hollow cylinder I3 there is provided gripping and sealing means, such as a deformable cylinder I4, engaging the internal bore of hollow cylinder I3 and having a second part I6 to be joined extending therethrough along the axis of the aperture in end portion 4 and disposed in contiguous relation to part II, i. e., adjacent and out of contact therewith. The mounting means carrying "part I6 is thus movable along the common axis of parts II and I6 and maintains a substantially vacuum-tight seal about part IB and about the aperture in end portion 4.

Ihere may be further provided means engaging either part II or IE or both to move same into contact and so positioned as to be accessible from the exterior of housing I. There is shown a simple lever arrangement I! mounted upon end portion 4 and extending to contact the end of part E6 in pivotal relation to housing I;' however, it will be appreciated that various means are suitable for this purpose including an axially-aligned spring-actuated release mechanism, for example.

Considering now the electrical elements and connections of the invention, itwill be seen from the drawing that there is provided a high frequency power supply or voltage source I8 which has a variable output frequency controlled by a knob I9. One of the output terminals of the high frequency (or H. F.) voltage source is connected through a switch or circuit breaker 2I to one of the parts II, while the other output terminal is connected to one terminal of a rheo stat or potentiometer22. Connection is also made from the other rheostat terminal to a contact 23 disposed adjacent part I6 and adapted to electrically contact same. In order that the circuit may be auto matically broken before shorting through parts II and I6 when they come in contact with each other, electrical contact 23 may be immovably mounted in sliding electrical contact with part I6 whereby the end of part It passes contact 23 and breaks contact therewith immediately prior to joining of parts II and I6. It should be noted in this respect that similar results may be obtained by employing an overload circuit breaker in the high frequency line which opens when the current in the circuit increases beyond a predetermined value. A further electrical element provided is a coil or air core solenoid 24 disposed intermediate parts II and I6 and aligned about the common axis thereof with the air core connecting parts I I and I6. Solenoid 24 is energized from a direct current (or D. C.) power supply 26 disposed exterior to housing I and connected across solenoid 24 through lead-through insulators in the housing wall.

With reference to the operation of invention, there is first inserted in plug I2 and cylinder I3 the parts I I and I6 to be welded. It will be appreciated that these parts may have any configuration and that the mounting means may be formed to grip or clamp these parts in various ways as by jaws or the like. Also, it is not necessary for parts I I and I6 to extend through the mounting means as provision may be made for electrical connection to the parts internal to housing I. The mounting means, which may have been removed from housing I for the attachment thereto of parts I I and I8, are inserted in appropriate apertures in housing I with plug I2 mating with the tapered aperture in end portion 3 and cylinder I3 slipping into the aperture in end portion 4. Electrical connection is made from high frequency voltage source I8 to parts Hand I6 through switch 2I and rheostat 22, and solenoid 24 is energized by D. C. power supply 26. Operation of vacuum pump 8 is then commenced and chamber 2 evacuated.

The vacuum produced in chamber 2 causes a pressure differential between the interior and exterior of housing I and this pressure acts upon cylinder I3 to move it inwardly of housing I so that parts II and I6 approach one another. This movement of cylinder I3 and attached part I6 will be seen to automatically result from the pressure difference produced by the vacuum within housing I, and with the proper amount of friction in the contact of cylinder I 3 with housing I this movement is steady and not unduly rapid.

With the constant reduction in spacing between parts I I and I6 there occurs an electron discharge between parts II and I6 by virtue of the high frequency voltage impressed therebetween by voltage source I8. It will be appreciated that this discharge occurs much more readily in the evacuated chamber 2 than it would at atmospheric pressure and also that less energy loss occurs in the vacuum. Also solenoid 24 produces magnetic lines of force through the air core thereof between parts II and I6 by virtue of the current flowing therethrough from D. C. power supply 26 and these lines of force focus the electron discharge to strike the opposing part and prevent misdirec tion and loss of electrons from the discharge. As parts II and I6 approach one another they reach a certain separation (1 wherein the voltage and frequency are such that a resonant interchange of electrons occur between parts II and I6. This phenomenon is termed electron multipaction and occurs when the potential V, the separation d, and the wavelength of impressed voltage A are in such relation as to satisfy the wherein K is a constant for particular geometry and apparatus. lVIuItipaction provides an electron cascade or avalanche by the reversal of the polarity of impressed voltage in the electron transit time between parts serving as electrodes whereby secondary electrons are accelerated from each part in turn to the other part. A tremendous heating effect attends the electron multipactoring and the adjacent surfaces of parts II and I6 are heated to incandescence almost instantaneously. It is to be noted that the net current flow through H. F. voltage source I8 remains quite small during multipaction between parts I I and I6 although a large current transfer is effected back and forth between the parts. The above-noted relation of voltage, distance, and wavelength is that required for the initiation of multipaction and after initiation the phenomenon persists even though one of the values, such as the distance, is changed a small amount and thus there is actually a short period of time during which multipaction occurs even though part It is moving. Also the frequency required is quite high and thus a large quantity of electrons dis charge between parts II and I 6 owing to the multitude of polarity reversals during the short time that the parts are separated the proper distance. It will also be appreciated from the above equation that either the voltage or frequency thereof may be varied to produce multipactoring with a set distance between parts II and I6 and this is probably best accomplished by fixing cylinder I3 as by a flange about the outer end so that it is immobile.

Following multipaction and consequent heating of adjacent surfaces of parts II and I6 these parts are placed in contact either by the continued movement of cylinder I3 under the influence of air pressure or by actuation of such as a leve arrangement I! forcing part I6 into contact with partgII. Owing to the very high temperature of the adjacent surfaces of parts II and I6, contact of these parts fuses them together and joins parts II and I6 with practically a perfect weld which is invisible to ordinary in spection; No slag, oxide, or the like is present inasmuch as the entire operation is performed in time chamber 2 is open as the pressure therein will rapidly drop upon closure of housing I. It will, of course, be appreciated that the conditions for multipaction are influenced by the pressure within chamber 2 as the electron transit time is a function thereof and thus it is possible to control or produce multipaction by controlling the pressure in chamber 2. This may be accomplished either by adjustment of valve 9 or by control o pu p Inasmuch as mounting means, including parts l2 and I3, are removably mounted in housing, there are unavoidable air leaks into housing I, particularly about cylinder |3; however, with a large pumping capacity compared to the size of chamber 2 satisfactory vacuum may be easily obtained.

There has been disclosed above an improved electric welding device accomplishing the noted objects and having numerous advantages over conventional apparatus and while the invention has been disclosed with respect to a single preferred embodiment, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that numerous modifications and variations are possible within the spirit and scope of the invention and thus it is not intended to limit the invention except by the terms of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An improved welding device comprising an evacuated chamber, means for inserting a pair of metallic parts to be welded therein, a source of high frequency voltage connected between said parts, voltage control means connected to said high voltage source for setting the voltage between said parts to produce multipaction, and means forcing said parts into contact after heating thereof by multipaction therebetween.

2. A method of welding metallic parts comprising the step of disposing a pair of parts to be welded in juxtaposition with surfaces to be joined facing each other, evacuating the space between the surfaces to be joined, producing electron multipaction between said surfaces whereby the temperature thereof is raised, and urging the adjacent surfaces of said metallic parts together to form a butt weld.

3. An improved butt welding device comprising means disposing metallic parts to be welded in juxtaposition with the surfaces thereof to be joined contiguous, an evacuated envelope defining a chamber about said surfaces and enclosing the space therebetween, a source of high frequency voltage connected between said parts to produce electron multipaction therebetween, and means urging said surfaces of said parts to be joined into contact to butt weld same.

4. An improved butt welding device comprising an evacuated chamber adapted to contain in contiguous relationship a pair of metallic parts to be butt welded, a source of high frequency voltage, a variable resistance connected in series with said source of voltage across said parts to be welded whereby the voltage therebetween is variable to produce electron multipaction therebetween, and means engaging one of said parts to move same into contact with the other of said parts to join same.

5. An improved welding device comprising a housing enclosing a chamber, means communicating with said chamber for continuous evacuation thereof, means engaging said housing and disposing a pair of metallic parts to be welded within said chamber with the surfaces thereof to be joined adjacent one another, and a source of highfrequency voltage connected between said parts, the voltage frequency of said source being controllable to produce electron multipaction between adjacent surfaces of said parts in said chamber, and one of said parts being movably mounted with respect to the other whereby movement into contact after electron multipaction therebetween perfects a butt welding thereof.

6. An improved device for butt welding a pair of metallic parts comprising a housing having an 6 r aperture in one wall thereof, means evacuating said housing, means removably disposing one of said parts with the surface thereof to be joined within said housing, a cylindrical mounting engaging the other of said parts to be welded disposed in the aperture in said housing and slideably engaging said housing whereby said mounting and part are movable under the influence of the vacuum within said housin to approach the part disposed therein, and a source of high frequency voltage connected between said parts to be welded and producing electron multipaction therebetween.

7. An improved welding device for joining a pair of metallic parts and comprising an evacuated housing having apertures in opposite walls thereof, mounting means removably disposed within one of said apertures and carrying one of said parts with the surface thereof to be joined internal to said housing, a cylinder slideably engaging said housing in the other aperture therein and carrying the other part in alignment with said above-mentioned part whereby said cylinder and part are movable into said housing by pressure difference between the inside and outside of said housing, and a source of high frequency voltage connected between said parts whereby electron multipaction occurs therebetween as said parts approach each other and the surfaces thereof heated by multipaction join upon contact.

8. An improved welding device for joining a pair of metallic parts comprising means securing said parts in alignment with the faces thereof to be joined adjacent each other, means evacuating the space between said parts, a source of high frequency voltage connectedbetween said parts to produce electron discharge therebetween, and means engaging at least one of said parts and movable under the influence of the'vacuum between said parts to move said parts together whereby said electro discharge multipactors and adjacent faces of said parts are joined upon contact by the high heat thereof resulting from electron multipaction.

9. An improved welding device comprising means disposing a pair of metallic parts in alignment with surfaces thereof to be joined adjacent each other, an evacuated envelope enclosing the surfaces of said parts to be joined and the space therebetween, a variable frequency high frequency voltage source connected between. said parts to produce electron multipaction therebetween, and moving means engaging one of said parts to urge said parts into contact whereby same are joined.

10. An improved butt welding device comprising mounting means having a pair of elements each adapted to removably carry a part to be joined, said elements being aligned and being movable relative to each other along acommon axis to move said parts into contact, a source of high frequency voltage connected between said parts to produce electron discharge therein whereby the temperature of adjacent surfaces of said parts are heated, an air core solenoid disposed between said parts with the air core thereof aligned with the parts to be Welded, and a power source energizing said solenoid to produce a magnetic field through the core thereof directing and focusing electron discharge between said parts.

ROBERT W. CLACK.

N 0 references cited. 

